“Then Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock twice with his staff; water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their livestock drank.”
(Numbers 20:11)

Many of us are in need of deep, deep refreshment. Sometimes it takes just one moment of slowing down and taking a breath to see how exhausted we’ve become. Thankfully, the Scriptures tell us that true refreshment can be found; however, it’s sourced in a very strange place. We are often told to go to a “rock” and there we will find refreshing water to drink. This is pretty counter-intuitive considering the non-liquid qualities of rocks.

So what’s up with this image? Paul wrote the following in 1 Corinthians 10: “For they drank from the spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ.” This was pointing back to the story of Moses in the wilderness. When Moses struck the rock with his staff, water flowed out. Paul is showing us that this is an Old Testament picture that signified how Christ was struck at the cross. Christ and Him crucified is the firm rock from which water freely flows. This was the absolute center and focus of the first century church:

“For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified.” (1 Corinthians 2:2)

There are many, many Christians who are seeking water from shaky places. I have certainly been there myself. In the church, there are often new “trends” and “hot topics”; fancy theology, prophecies, signs and wonders that often get included in this search for spiritual renewal and refreshment. Many of these things are great bonuses to the Christian walk. But, by golly, these are not the things we trust in! True refreshment and renewal comes from a place of rest and trust, and many of the things Christians focus on and seek after involve the labor of their own hands. But these things cannot add to what Christ has already freely given to us (and what He has freely given to us is the true thing people are seeking)!

There’s only one thing in the whole universe that’s completely unshakable and that’s the cross of Christ. That’s where He saved us, redeemed us, and gave us every blessing both now and forevermore. Nothing we do can ever add to this accomplished work. The Rock was struck once and now water flows from it freely and effortlessly.

The problem is that many people are performing for their water, striving and digging and trying to pump it up, instead of just resting and receiving from the Rock that was laid in Zion. Their performances can be hiding behind any number of trendy Christian things. But regardless, people are burnt out, even in places that seem to have the “next big thing.”

There’s only one “next big thing” and that’s Christ and Him crucified. It’s the one thing, the only thing. Paul boasted in this alone: “May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world” (Gal. 6:14). If we could save ourselves through deep teachings, healings, miracles, or prophecies, then Christ died for nothing.

For the record, I love things like healing and prophetic words and I engage in them often. These are outflows of a life of grace. Unfortunately, there are too many people who have not learned how to enter His rest. Instead, they base their rest on their pursuit and experience of these things. But the Rock, the cross of Christ, has already pursued us and included us. It is the place where God single-handedly put your old man to death and raised you to new life (see Rom. 6 & Col. 2). There, your rocky barren heart was crucified and replaced with a heart that is filled with the water of life! This is a free gift received by trust…

You cannot overcome sin, anxiety, depression, worthlessness, evil thoughts in your own strength. You have to give up and “lose your life in order to find it.” Give yourself and all your striving over to His amazing grace that has freely given you all things (1 Cor. 2:12). Be free from performance-driven Christianity!

An ancient dictator who ruled over an immense global empire was once given a dream by God. It stirred him so much that through a series of circumstances, this dream ended up getting written down and chronicled for all future generations to read. In the dream there was a huge brilliant statue made of gold, silver, bronze, iron, and clay (see Dan. 2). Out of nowhere, a Rock appeared, one that was “not made by human hands.” This rock struck the statue and shattered it to dust. The pieces of it were all carried away by the wind, but the Rock grew to become a great mountain that filled the whole earth.

Amongst other details, the statue is a primarily a symbol for the pride of man. This is the same pride that leads humanity to come up with ways to save the world. This often extends to the church in the sense of people ultimately relying on their own strength for change and transformation.We often build our own structures to deal with the struggles and brokenness of life. Our “gold” might be some good teachings while the “silver” might be some miracles here and there. This gets thrown in with the “clay” of picking up our cross and exerting personal discipline towards some particular end. Put all together, we think got something. But we actually have it backwards. Those things do nothing to save our actual beings. The daily struggles, the self-hatred, the addictions. Those things don’t flee just because we try harder.

No! It was the Rock made not by human hands that brought salvation to the world. Daniel said that this Rock “shall never be destroyed” (Dan. 2:44). Like the Rock in the wilderness, this same Rock points us to the Savior and His work accomplished at the cross. The winds blow everything else away, but this remains.

Therefore, rest in the Rock, and find your permanent home there. That is where your salvation, redemption, peace, love, and joy are forever secure. Nothing can ever undo the death of the Lamb. His blood poured out and He declared, “It is finished!” The waters of life flow from that Rock alone.  Quit looking for life in other ways and places, thing that ultimately you leave you disappointed, up and down, to and fro, blown this way and that by the wind. Stability lies in the Rock.

Liquid life from a solid source. Amen.